The present invention relates to hand tools, and pertains particularly to a novel impact tool.
The hand held and manipulated hammer is perhaps one of the oldest and most widely used tools known to man. The hammer has a wide variety of uses and is utilized by a wide variety of people, both skilled and unskilled. The skilled carpenters use of a hammer for driving nails is perhaps the most well known use of the typical hammer.
Equally well known use of the hammer is that by the typical unskilled homeowner for the occasional driving of a nail. The unskilled use of a hammer for the driving of nails is frequently a frustrating and dangerous undertaking. In the typical use for driving nails, tacks and the like, the nail is held between the thumb and forefinger of one hand while the hammer is held by the handle in the other hand and used to strike the nail on the head until the nail has penetrated the article into which it is being driven to hold it in place. This is a hazardous undertaking for the unskilled, which frequently results in striking and injuring the fingers or hand. In addition, the unskilled user of the hammer frequently bends the nail before it can be driven to its final position because of his inaccuracy lack of skill in striking the nail.
The design of the typical hammer is such that it has an impact head on one end of an elongated handle. The handle is designed to be grasped in the hand at the end opposite the impact head in order to add leverage and increase the velocity of the movement of the hand at the hammer head to increase or multiply the impact of the hammer head on the nail or object being struck.
Because of this leverage resulting from the length of the hammer handle and the infrequent use of the hammer by the typical person he fails to develop skill in the use of the hammer. As a result of his lack of skill, the impact of the hammer head is inaccurate, such that it frequently results in missing the nail or bending it. The guidance of the hammer head of the typical hammer depends on the skill of the operator.
Accordingly, it is desirable that an improved hammer device be available which reduces the need for a skilled user.